


The Observations of a Romantic

by bluesatinsashes



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Introspection, M/M, Party Banter, cassandra greatly approves, cassandra ships it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2020-07-18 00:08:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19965487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluesatinsashes/pseuds/bluesatinsashes
Summary: "Cassandra watched them and sawpassion, she saw a romance blossoming despite its infertile conditions, and she was a little more than embarrassed to admit that it warmed her like Varric’s tales."Cassandra observes how Dorian and the Inquisitor's relationship has affected the both of them.





	The Observations of a Romantic

**Author's Note:**

> I've always really liked the _"You're smiling a great deal these days, Dorian,"_ party banter sequence and wanted to write a fic about it while tying in Cassandra's li'l romantic heart. So, this was the result of that desire.

Cassandra Pentaghast considered herself a romantic, despite everything.

It was something she grew to be proud of throughout the years, even though she still resented the fact to be public. If it wasn’t for the Inquisitor catching her reading _Swords and Shields_ then pestering her about it until she finally admitted to the contents of the novel in question, she didn’t believe she would have ever told anyone about her secret. It was private, and she was afraid once the word got out about it people would look at her differently. They would believe the Seeker was too soft under her armor, daydreaming about wearing frilly dresses and waiting for a man to come and save her as she swooned. The very thought made her nose crinkle in disgust, that’s not how she viewed romance at all. No, Cassandra liked the excitement, she liked the thought of being so deeply in love with someone that her heart would race when she’d catch a glance of them. Or if they made so much as eye-contact with her, it would light up the entire room. She liked _passion_ , and because none of these things were actually happening to her at the moment, she sought out fiction to quench her thirst. It was also why she caught herself watching the Inquisitor and Pavus so closely lately.

It seemed that she was, of course, somehow nearly the last to know that something had been going on between them for some time. She always had problems with looking at the bigger picture of things, after all. Cassandra had noticed the looks between them since first meeting the Tevinter back in Redcliffe, even more so after their venture into the future. There was also the flirting, but Pavus did that with nearly everyone - including herself - so she thought nothing of it when he and the Inquisitor would exchange flirtations whilst on the field together. With this in mind, Cassandra didn’t know why it had taken her so long to put the pieces together, especially when it seemed every other person knew about it. She had finally figured it out when Chantry sisters had begun to approach her sheepishly, asking if she would check if the Inquisitor was under the influence of blood magic from Pavus’s behalf.

She found herself paying closer attention to the two of them as she traveled with the pair on expeditions from then on. Not that she didn’t exactly trust Dorian at the time, she just held a general dislike for the man and was afraid on the Inquisitor’s account. Even though Cassandra didn’t necessarily agree with _all_ of Trevelyan’s decisions and ideas, she still respected and supported them. She was happy to call him her leader, and even happier to call him a friend. She was only just looking out for him, that was a thing friends did for each other. Blood magic or not, she loathed the idea of Pavus breaking her friend’s heart.

For the next few weeks she observed the two at a closer level. There was a definite change in Trevelyan she had begun to notice - he was visibly happier. When she had first met the Inquisitor, he was a rather melancholy man. He had awakened at Haven to discover his two only friends had died at the Conclave as well as everyone else that had attended besides him - and therefore he was a primary suspect for their deaths. Trevelyan tried to remain charming and helpful for the thousands of lives looking up to him as Thedas' last hope, however their Herald had only truly brightened after Dorian had joined the Inquisition. Cassandra never understood Pavus's appeal, he preened far too much and she didn't find him as handsome as he preached. But, Cassandra begrudgingly admitted that he was making the Inquisitor a happier man, so she questioned the issue no further.

Dorian remained the same for a time, still confident and challenging to anyone who questioned him or his motives. Cassandra didn’t find it surprising, she had difficulty imagining the man as anything else. But as time grew on, she began to notice a change in Dorian as well. He became softer around the Inquisitor, his smiles were warmer instead of his usual flippant smirk, and he eventually began to showcase his fondness towards Trevelyan in front of others. She was beginning to notice the way each of their faces lit up when they saw each other, or the way the tension visibly left their shoulders when they spoke or touched. Cassandra watched them and saw _passion_ , she saw a romance blossoming despite its infertile conditions, and she was a little more than embarrassed to admit that it warmed her like Varric’s tales.

Cassandra was sharpening her sword with a piece of whetstone at their Storm Coast camp when she finally brought it up. The two of them were sitting together as Cassandra watched, sparks from her blade flying into the wet grass below her. Dorian was reading a thick tome with a Tevene cover, Trevelyan was drawing something in his ratty sketchbook he carried with him during every expedition, a blanket thrown over both their shoulders. Occasionally one would glance over at what the other was doing and comment on something, but besides that they sat in a comfortable silence for most of the evening. She believed they would have remained that way until nightfall if not for Scout Harding calling for the Inquisitor from across the camp, informing him that their new orders from Leliana had just arrived.

Trevelyan touched Dorian once on his knee with an apologetic smile and stood. Then after giving Dorian the rest of the blanket and a quick kiss on the cheek, he made his way to the other side of camp. Cassandra fought off a secret grin as the Tevinter gently placed the Inquisitor’s sketchbook closer to him so it would not fall in the dirt, then wrapped Trevelyan's side of the blanket around himself. After getting himself re-situated, Dorian sighed with the new position then placed a hand to his cheek, smiling softly.

“You’re smiling a great deal these days, Dorian,” Cassandra remarked, resting her sword against her leg as she paused in its maintenance. She took some pride when Dorian’s head snapped to her direction, caught off guard only a moment before slapping on a typically insufferable cocky grin. 

“I always smile,” he shot back jovially. “People like my smile, and they should! I have excellent teeth.”

Cassandra rolled her eyes and choked down a scoff. “Do you always do it while staring dreamily into the distance?”

“It depends how long until dinner,” Dorian replied, flippant as always. He opened the dusty tome and went back to his reading shortly after, although the way his fingers still tenderly ran over the warped cover of Trevelyan’s sketchbook failed to pass over Cassandra’s observation.

It was truly only something a romantic would notice, after all.


End file.
